This is another old one I discovered on the current deleting binge, from 2015, that shows old equipment could give good results.
Specific Feedback Requested
All comments welcome!
Technical Details
Canon 7D2, 100-400 II at 400, 1/1600 sec, f/6.3, ISO 800. The filmstrip shows I had been shooting a Blue Darner in flight (with reasonable success) and didn’t change settings when I spotted this one. I did a manual focus stack of two frames with the near wings in focus, then the abdomen and body – presumably handheld as the two frames weren’t centered the same but the DF didn’t move and the layers auto-aligned well in PS. Just slight highlight slider movement in LR (updated process), aligned in PS, near wings masked in, and Topaz Denoise. Removed an OOF blob in the LR. Cropped to 33% of the original frame. I always loved the sharpness of that lens and still use it on my IR-converted 5D3.
Great results, Diane. Your post processing techniques are phenomenal. The detail you’ve gotten in the skimmer’s wings is spot on. Glad to see you rescued it from the deleting binge!
Very good results, Diane. I just saw one of these or very similar this morning while out for my walk. No camera other than my phone, so no photos today. Just enjoyed the brief moment he landed in front of me. Very nice details in this beauty, and that nice smooth BG sure makes him stand out.
Diane–You have been holding out on us. This is one of your best dragonfly photos that has some ideal crispness and contrast. You can crop it a little tighter to remove the light spot in the lower LH corner. Otherwise–awesome capture…Jim
Thanks, @linda_mellor, @Shirley_Freeman and @Jim_Zablotny! With the in-camera focus bracketing today, I could have gotten all the wingtips sharp. But this season and last I’m finding fewer individuals and fewer species – concerning, for sure! Although the small lakes I shoot at have good water levels (spring-fed, I think) the drought conditions out here are worrisome.
It would be easy to remove the OOF smudge in the LL but I felt it added a bit of authenticity. I’m loath to do a complete cleanup and this one had such a smooth BG (calm shaded water) that it already looked a little phony. But I think you’re right – it should be cleaned up. And a crop could work well, as it’s a bit boxy.
@Jim_Zablotny, I’m finding I’ve been holding out on myself… I’m about 1/4 of the way through what LR shows as 1525 dragonfly and damselfly images. I was just planning to delete a lot of bad ones. I’ve been doing that but finding a lot of good ones that I had forgotten about and that are made better by today’s raw and denoise tools. I’ll be sharing some. (Meanwhile, I never finished deleting ocean waves…)
First, it’s a beautiful dragonfly - second, lucky you saved this from deletion, Diane. It’s a great example of what can be achieved with a two frame stack! The slightly oof further wings don’t matter at all imo. It might even look phony with completely perfect focus. Agree with Jim about the light spot - why not just clone it out? Lovely shot.
